Boss: Henry Needs To Battle

But he’s smart enough not to lose that balance - I don’t think I have to tell him"

Ståle Solbakken

Boss Ståle Solbakken today backed skipper Karl Henry to find the right balance in his tackling and insisted he must not lose his “fighting mentality”.

Henry has admitted he was in the wrong and apologised after his sending off against Brighton on Saturday following a challenge on Liam Bridcutt.

It was the midfielder’s fourth red card in almost 400 senior appearances, and Solbakken believes he will be able to rediscover the right balance between needing to make tough challenges and not crossing the line.

“Karl has been into my office and apologised, he’s apologised to the fan and he also apologised in the dressing room after the game,” said the boss.

“I think it’s important that he doesn’t lose his fighting mentality.

“He mustn’t come to the point where he’s afraid of tackling.

“The point is always where do you tackle? I don’t think it was really dangerous on the halfway line.

“It’s about thinking twice about where you are on the pitch and how you’re going to do it.

“But he’s smart enough not to lose that balance - I don’t think I have to tell him.

“I think he’ll have that in the back of his mind but it’s important when he comes back he can continue to be a fighter.

“If he does that (stops tackling) then he’s useless.

“I can’t play a Karl Henry who doesn’t go around tackling people. So he has to find the right balance.”

Henry must now sit out the next three games through suspension, offering an opportunity for someone else to come in and stake a claim.

“I think we not only have to find a replacement for Karl but we must find a better balance in the away games,” he said.

“Tongo Doumbia can play that role, but we also have Dave Edwards, David Davis and Kevin Foley who can come inside there, so we’ll see what we do.”

There has been speculation as to whether former Wolves loanee Emmanuel Frimpong will be returning to Molineux, with both Solbakken and Arsenal manager Arsene Wenger confirming the interest.

Solbakken has confirmed Wolves are continuing to monitor the situation.

“We have discussed him and obviously he has a relationship with Wolverhampton but it’s also important he’s 100 per cent fit when he comes here and is ready, so we don’t lose a month,” said the boss.

“I can’t say I know in detail about his fitness because he hasn’t played that many games.

“I watched him play in the Capital One Cup game against Reading on DVD, but that was a strange game.

“They were 4-0 down and he was substituted after 62 minutes (when it was 4-1).

“We’re monitoring the situation - let’s say that.

“But it’s also about what we’ve got here - I don’t want to underestimate them either.

“It’s a balance. We’re not panicking over the situation with Karl - we don’t do that.”

The emergency loan window closes on November 22, ahead of the transfer window re-opening in January, and the boss says any potential recruits must offer something different – or better - than that already within the squad.

“As a manager you always want more but I’m happy with the squad,” he said.

“If we want to bring someone in, it’s important we bring in someone who has other qualities and that we have other types of players.

“I’ve said all along I’m happy with the squad, but if we can take in someone who has something different from the players we have, we should consider it.